1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a multifunctional printer and a copier that have an external paper tray attached to an apparatus body.
2. Description of Related Art
In recent years, some types of multifunctional printers/copiers have an option of having an external paper tray to be attached to an external part of an apparatus body, in addition to internal paper trays provided inside of the body.
The external paper tray includes a built-in elevator on which paper is loaded. A cover of the external paper tray is opened in order to load paper in the external paper tray. Upon detecting the open cover, the elevator is automatically lowered at the lowest position so that there is enough space to load paper. When the paper is set on the elevator and the cover is closed, the closure of the cover is detected, thereby automatically raising the elevator up to a position where the top paper becomes feedable. Accordingly, the paper setting is completed. In addition, the elevating operation of the elevator is performed by a drive of the apparatus body.
However, the conventional technology had the following problem.
When the apparatus body is having an error during a paper feeding, no matter whether the paper from the internal paper tray or from the external paper tray is causing the problem, the power supply for the drive mechanism of the apparatus body is immediately shut down, for safety reasons.
Therefore, in case of having a paper delivery error in the external paper tray, the elevator does not become lowered, even when the cover of the external paper tray is opened to retrieve the jammed paper. Since there is little space between the top surface of the external paper tray and the top paper loaded on the elevator, it is impossible to reach for the paper, thereby making it difficult to retrieve the jammed paper.
This invention addresses the above-described problem. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a copier and a multifunctional printer that allows an easy removal of jammed paper while providing user safety, during a paper delivery error in the external paper tray.
In this invention, a multifunctional printer is provided with an external paper tray that has an elevator movable in up/down directions, the elevator being empowered by a power supply to a drive mechanism of an apparatus body. Paper is provided on the elevator to be fed into the apparatus body. When a sheet of paper remains within the external paper tray during a paper delivery error, the elevator is lowered to a predetermined location before shutting down the power supply to the drive mechanism in the apparatus body.
Accordingly, it is possible to provide safety by shutting down the power supply to the drive mechanism in the apparatus body in case of a paper delivery error. At the same time, the elevator is lowered to provide a space necessary for removing the paper jam. Since the user""s hand can reach between the inner top wall of the external paper tray and the top sheet of the paper loaded on the elevator, it is possible to easily remove the paper jam.